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More coverage of soccer mom's lawsuit against Lebanon, PA County Sheriff

Mike

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LEBANON

Woman plans lawsuit in gun case

Wednesday, November 19, 2008
BY MONICA VON DOBENECK
Of Our Lebanon County Bureau
LEBANON - Meleanie Hain's attorney says the Lebanon woman has endured the ridicule of neighbors and lost baby-sitting jobs since she achieved notoriety for openly, and legally, carrying a gun to her 5-year-old daughter's soccer game.

And it's Sheriff Michael DeLeo's fault, according to a malicious-prosecution lawsuit that civil rights attorney Matthew Weisberg said he plans to file Monday.

"The sheriff should have known Meleanie had the right to openly carry," the Philadelphia-area attorney said.


Since DeLeo tried to take away her permit to carry a concealed weapon, "she has become a pariah in her small community," Weisberg said.

Hain achieved national attention after she took a gun, holstered on her hip, to a soccer game Sept. 11 at Optimist Park in Lebanon. After some other parents complained, DeLeo revoked her concealed weapons permit, saying she showed poor judgment.

Lebanon County Judge Robert J. Eby reversed the sheriff's decision on appeal during a court hearing attended by about 60 gun rights activists.

Eby also lectured Hain, telling her that what is legal is not necessarily right. He asked her to conceal her gun if she carried it to soccer games. But Hain said after the hearing that she planned to continue carrying it openly since it is her right under the Second Amendment.

Weisberg said the parents who sent their children to her in-home baby-sitting service knew she openly carried a gun, but didn't care until after the sheriff revoked her license.

"She lost those jobs because of the negativity surrounding her prosecution," he said.

Weisberg said the lawsuit will seek damages for Hain's pain and suffering, as well as money for her attorney fees.

George Christiansen, attorney for the Lebanon County Sheriff's Department, acknowledged he has received a letter from Weisberg about the intention to sue, and he has turned it over to the county's insurance company.

"I don't know the legal basis for the lawsuit," Christiansen said. "Mike DeLeo exercised what the state statute put upon him regarding the issuance of permits. I'm convinced it was a valid judgment call. Everybody can sue anybody for anything."

DeLeo revoked Hain's permit under the Pennsylvania Uniform Firearms Act, which gives sheriffs the right to deny permits to anyone "whose character and reputation is such that the individual would be likely to act in a dangerous manner to public safety."

"I just did my job," DeLeo said Tuesday. "The courts have ruled, and we respect that ruling."

MONICA VON DOBENECK: 832-2090 or mdobeneck@patriot-news.com
 

JBURGII

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So in having qualified for a permit, acting legally on that permit becomes someone whose character and reputation is such that the individual would be likely to act in a dangerous manner to public safety? Isn't the permit process there to show you are NOT that kind of person in the first place?

I am getting really sick of the hypocrisy/double standards and the rest of the crap thats being delt. Don't get me wrong, I believe there should be guidelines we need to abide by in order to get along. But at what point do we spend more time trying to toe the line and not be politically incorrect to the point that we don't actually live life. Dang, even in death if we haven't properly filled out the paperwork, someone is gonna be paying for it..

arg! J
 

DanM

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Hope Meleanie takes them to the cleaners!

Also, anyone here who can give her some business or give others referrals to her for business, to make up for her losing business,should.


I have two daughters in after-school child care, and if Meleanie were local to me I would switch to her in a heartbeat.


Go, Meleanie!
 

ixtow

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Make that bastard eat his words. A man who declares that exercising a right is grounds for revoking that same right, is cealrly a sick person.
 

no carry permit ?

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DanM wrote:
Hope Meleanie takes them to the cleaners!

Also, anyone here who can give her some business or give others referrals to her for business, to make up for her losing business,should.


I have two daughters in after-school child care, and if Meleanie were local to me I would switch to her in a heartbeat.


Go, Meleanie!

Same here ! Your kids would be safer with her then some big chain daycare with a "gun free zone" sign out front.

The arrogance of the sheriff is amazing, " I did my job?"
 

shefearsnothing

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On Monday there was one local tv station here TWICE, on Tuesday my attorney drove here for another one with another station. While he was here is when the Patriot News contacted him along with the AP. The AP asked for a copy of the lawsuit when it's filed on Monday. I don't know if they will run with it or not but I figure it's promising that they're asking. I say promising not because I want the attention on ME but I want the attention on the issue. (Can't seem to stress THAT enough these days.)

The more it gets out and people become aware that what he did really IS wrong the BETTER. (especially all those sheriffs out there!!) Wednesday I did a 2 hour local radio show (only people in Lebanon could hear it because it was THAT local) which was actually decent. Anyway, it's good that the word is getting out!
 

JoeSparky

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It sounds like the PA State Legislature needs to modify the current law and remove this loophole that the County Sheriffs seem to want to use.... MAYBE, NO PERMIT WILL BE SUSPENDED OR REVOKED UNLESS A PERMIT HOLDER IS CHARGED WITH A FELONY!

Or just take it out of the Sheriffs hands completely.... and to a state level agency that actually understands the law and it's intent.... if such exists!

JoeSparky
 

Jared

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I find something interesting that should be mentioned that the sheriff can not claim that she was acting in a manner that was dangerous to public safety for these two reasons.

1. Open carry is deeply rooted in case law as a fundamental right.

2. PA state law states that you need a license to carry even openly in a city of the first class. Using the the sheriffs' logic, it is irresponsible to carry openly in PA unless your in Philadelphia.... it makes no sense.
 

LovesHisXD45

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Methinks justice will be served on this one. Unless the courts are completely corrupted, they cannot rule in favor of the sheriff according to the statutes that are on the books. The burden of proof will be on him to justify his actions according to state law, not his opinion of the situation.

I hope she rips him a new one!

Kevin
 

areyouserious

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Let me guess, most of you that are fighting so hard for this open carry ability
were either not able to make the sports team in high school, your mother didn't
hug enough, your girlfriend (if you had one) left you for the popular guy or you
got beat up a lot in school.

Can someone please give me an HONEST and rational reason why you think this is so
important. I recently had one of your minion actually equate it to Rosa Parks. He
seriously compared the "right" to carry a handgun openly to the civil
rights movement. I have to admit that it was by far, one of the most ignorant things
I have heard in some time. This moron's only other response was "because
I can". That would have to clearly be the second most ignorant thing I have
heard in some time.

Please, please, please tell me that the rest of you are not that ignorant. If in
fact you are, than I am absolutely terrified of your group. In fact I'm so terrified
that maybe I should get my pistol and strap it on my side and show everyone how
bad I am. Let everyone know that you had better not come close to me or start any
problems with me because I am so afraid of my shadow, that if pushed to the limit
I will gladly pull this gun and use it.

I have seem some of you fearless, courageous super heros carrying openly in very
rural areas and in grocery and department stores in my community. Wow does that
ever make me feel safe that your untrained, fat, out of shape, chain smoking, beer
swilling asses are the new Guardian Angels of Michigan. I also find in curious that
I NEVER see any of you carrying openly in Detroit, Flint or Pontiac......huh, I
wonder why that is? Maybe its a little out of your safety zone and you wont be able
to intimidate people there. And for christ sakes do any of you practice weapon retention....duh.

Its organizations like this that bring about gun control. Now with a new President
in office who has the party affiliation of known gun haters, I'm sure we'll
all be able to thank you fine upstanding citizens for bringing attention to yourselves
and making this an issue of "control".

Let me close in saying this....HEY EVERYBODY LOOK AT ME. HEY EVERYBODY LOOK AT THE
GUN I HAVE ON MY SIDE. HEY EVERYBODY DONT COME TO CLOSE OR START ANY PROBLEMS WITH
ME OR THERE WILL BE TROUBLE. HEY EVERYBODY AINT I COOL.
 

ixtow

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areyouserious wrote:
Let me guess, most of you that are fighting so hard for this open carry ability
were either not able to make the sports team in high school, your mother didn't
hug enough, your girlfriend (if you had one) left you for the popular guy or you
got beat up a lot in school.

Can someone please give me an HONEST and rational reason why you think this is so
important. I recently had one of your minion actually equate it to Rosa Parks. He
seriously compared the "right" to carry a handgun openly to the civil
rights movement. I have to admit that it was by far, one of the most ignorant things
I have heard in some time. This moron's only other response was "because
I can". That would have to clearly be the second most ignorant thing I have
heard in some time.

Please, please, please tell me that the rest of you are not that ignorant. If in
fact you are, than I am absolutely terrified of your group. In fact I'm so terrified
that maybe I should get my pistol and strap it on my side and show everyone how
bad I am. Let everyone know that you had better not come close to me or start any
problems with me because I am so afraid of my shadow, that if pushed to the limit
I will gladly pull this gun and use it.

I have seem some of you fearless, courageous super heros carrying openly in very
rural areas and in grocery and department stores in my community. Wow does that
ever make me feel safe that your untrained, fat, out of shape, chain smoking, beer
swilling asses are the new Guardian Angels of Michigan. I also find in curious that
I NEVER see any of you carrying openly in Detroit, Flint or Pontiac......huh, I
wonder why that is? Maybe its a little out of your safety zone and you wont be able
to intimidate people there. And for christ sakes do any of you practice weapon retention....duh.

Its organizations like this that bring about gun control. Now with a new President
in office who has the party affiliation of known gun haters, I'm sure we'll
all be able to thank you fine upstanding citizens for bringing attention to yourselves
and making this an issue of "control".

Let me close in saying this....HEY EVERYBODY LOOK AT ME. HEY EVERYBODY LOOK AT THE
GUN I HAVE ON MY SIDE. HEY EVERYBODY DONT COME TO CLOSE OR START ANY PROBLEMS WITH
ME OR THERE WILL BE TROUBLE. HEY EVERYBODY AINT I COOL.
No, we haven't heard all of this same half-baked, thought-out-only-far-enough-to-be-a-jerk, egotistical propaganda before. :quirky

Do I really even want to subject myself to pointing out the simple, and probably deliberate, errors in logic you have just provided?

Nah, you're clearly emotionally committed to hate, and nothing more.

Read the rest of the forum, especially: http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum6/

You see that, it's the "why open carry" portion of the forum. It has the answers and rebuttals to everything you're ranting about. The answers you seek, if indeed you seek any, can all be found there. But I doubt you want knowledge or understanding. If you did, you would have READ IT ALREADY. You're just here to be insuting and arrogant.

You're jsut here to insult us with the same old idiocies we've seen thousands of times before, and solidly put in their place:

The toilet.
 

ixtow

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...maybe I should get my pistol and strap it on my side...
Go ahead, you might like it. Then you can start answering all of that insulting condescension for yourself, instead of subject all of us decent people to your crapola. Maybe you'll even grow up enough to someday appologize for it.

Doubt it. I DARE you to prove me wrong. :lol:
 

LovesHisXD45

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, Utah, USA
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ROFL! I think the troll was talking to himself in the mirror. I guess it's good that the constitution gives him the right to a blanketed statement about a group of people he knows nothing about, but the 2nd amendment means nothing, right?

If he really knew anything about this topic, he would see very quickly that the kinds of people who carry, and those who OC, are among some of the most kind and law-abiding citizens in this country. When was the last time you read in any news paper about a criminal attacking an armed citizen who was open carrying? Why didn't the bad guy engage his "target"? If you are able to find examples, how did things work out for the bad guys?

Kevin
 

Grapeshot

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The ignorance expressed by such drive-bys was seriously funny the first few times I heard it - now it's just boring - nothing else.

Yata hey
 
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